Portable golf ball dispensing device



June 1, 1965 H. R. MIOTKE PORTABLE GOLF BALL DISPENSING DEVICE File d March 18, 1963 -2 Sheets-Sheet 1 IN VEN TOR HQ'JEVZYR Mom:

TDRNEZZ H. R. MIOTKE PORTABLE GOLF BALL DISPENSING DEVICE June 1, 1965 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed March 18, 1965 I NVENTOR. flan/215? M01212.

United States Patent 3 186,593 PORTABLE GOLF BALL DISPENSING DEVICE Harvey R. Miotke, 19314 Hamburg, Detroit, Mich. Filed Mar. 18, 1963, Ser. No. 265,863 3 Claims. (Cl. 221-297) This invention relates generally to golf ball dispensing devices and particularly to portable golf ball storage and dispensing devices.

One of the objects of my invention is to provide a portable golf ball storage and dispensing device which is also operable to pick up and store balls for future use.

Another object of the invention is to provide a portable golf ball storage and dispensing device of a structural character such that a ball may be ejected from the device onto a tee.

Another object of the invention is to provide a device of the above mentioned character which is readily convertible to a ball pick-up device.

A further object of the invention is to provide a device of the above mentioned character to eliminate the need for a golf player to stoop or bend in the teeing or picking up of a golf ball.

Other objects of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a side elevational view partly broken away and in section of a golf game accessory;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional View of the device;

FIG. 3 is a cross sectional view, taken along the line 33 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary elevational view, partly broken away and in section with certain movable parts thereof in the positions they will assume when the device is used as a golf ball dispenser;

FIG. 5 is a view similar to FIG. 4 showing the moving parts in the positions they will assume when the device is used for the picking up and storage of balls;

FIG. 6 is a vertical sectional view, taken along the line 6-6 of FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view, taken along the line 7-7 of FIG. 1, and

FIG. 8 is a top plan view of the device.

Referring to the drawings by characters of reference, there is shown a portable golf ball dispenser for use on golf links, the device including a vertical tube or cylindrical member 20 for the storage of golf balls 22. The upper end of the tube 20 is closed by a closure member or plug 24 and secured in and to the plug is the lower end of a hollow shaft 26 wherein golf tees 28 may be stored. The upper end of the below shaft 26 is closed by a readily removable cap or tube 39 which slips over an upper end portion of the shaft 26 and is releasably attached thereto by a tab 32, formed out of the shaft 26 and engaging in a bayonet slot 34 in the cap 30.

Carried by the cap 3i? there is a golf tee handling tool 36 having a sleeve 38 which telescopes within the upper end of the cap, the sleeve having a finger 40 that projects upwardly through an opening in the upper end of the cap. An inturned end, as at 42 of the sleeve 38 at its upper and provides a head and the finger 40 is bent over the head and is forked or bifurcated, as at 44, FIG. 8. The forked end 44 of the tool is adapted to receive a golf tee 28 for the purpose of inserting the tee in the ground and/ or for removing the tee from the ground. As shown, the head of the tee rests against the head 42 of the tool and the distance between the head and the forked end 44 of the tool may be used as a gauge for limiting the depth of insertion of the tee into the ground. A coil spring 48 within the sleeve 38 has its upper end abutting against the underside of the head 42 and its lower end seating on a pair of inturned tabs 5t; formed out of the sleeve 38. The spring 48 urges the sleeve 38 and the fork 44, carried thereby, downwardly until the fork grips the tee.

Telescoped onto a lower end portion of the ball storage tube 20 is an open-ended tube 52 which cooperates with the ball storage tube 20 both in the dispensing of a ball =and/ or in the picking up of balls from the ground. The outer tube 52 is provided with preferably three openings 54 in the side wall thereof, the openings being equally spaced apart about the periphery of the tube. Positioned between the inner tube 20 and the outer tube 52 are three leaf springs 56 having upper inturned retainer tabs 58 respectively engaging in apertures in the side wall of the inner tube 26 to attach the springs thereto. Lower end portions of the leaf springs 56 are bent inwardly, as at 69, to project into the ball storage tube 20 providing three seating points for the lowermost ball 22, as shown in FIG. 2. The bent spring portions 60 project respectively through three vertical equally and circumferentially spaced slots 62 in the ball storage tube, the slots extend ing downwardly through the lower edge of the tube. The lower portion of each of the leaf springs is further bent, as at 64, to extend downwardly and out of the ball storage tube 20, the portions $4 overhanging the lower edges 66 of the openings 54 in the outer tube 52 to earn on said edges upon pressing of the storage tu-be downwardly with the outer tube 52 resting on the ground. Thus the springs 56 rest on the lower edges of the slots 62 and norm-ally hold the storage tube 20 in the raised position. The lower end of each of the leaf springs 56 is provided with a stop member or abutment, such as, a cross piece 68 to retain the lower ends of the springs so as to provide limited inward flexing movement of the springs.

With particular reference to FIGS. 4 and 5, it will be seen that each of the openings 54 has two portions, one of which is offset laterally and downwardly with respect to the other, providing a downward step from edge 66 to edge 70. By rotating the tube 52 the springs 56 may be positioned in the upward position above edge 66, FIG. 4, or in the lower position above edge 70. In the upper position, the device is set to dispense golf balls whereas in the lower position the device is set for the picking up and injecting of balls into the ball storage tube 20.

A leaf spring 72 is provided to hold the tubes 20 and 52 against accidental rotation or :to hold them in the adjusted position for dispensing or ball pick-up, as the case may be. The leaf spring 72 may be suitably affixed near its upper end to the outside of the outer tube 52 and the lower free end of the spring bears against the outer side of the ball storage tube 2i; through an opening 74 in the outer tube. An outturned tab 76 formed out of the tube 259 abuts the upper edge of the opening 74 to limit downward movement of the tube 52 when the device is lifted from the ground.

Operation In operation, assuming that the outer tube 52 is in the position shown in FIGS. 2 and 4 which is the position to permit dispensing of a ball, the lower end of tube 52 may be placed against the ground and by pressing down on the shaft 26, the ball storage tube 20 is moved downwardly carrying the springs 56 downwardly therewith. Since the springs 56 seat at their lower angular portions 64 on the edges 6-5 of the outer tube 52, the springs will be cammed outwardly. This causes the inner rounded ball seat portions of the springs also to move outwardly and allow the lowermost one of the golf balls 22 to be released and discharge onto the ground, or onto a tee 28, as the case may be. To retrieve or pick up and store a ball in the storage tube 20, it is first necessary .to rotate the outer tube 52 such that the springs 56 position in the rightward por- While the portable golf ball dispensing device has been shown and described in considerable detail, it will be understood that many changes and variations thereof may be made Without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention.

What I claim is: V

1. A portable golf ball dispensing device comprising an inner ball storage tube having an upper closed end and a lower end, a shaft rigidly secured to the upper closed end of said ball storage tube, said ball storage tube having a plurality of circumferentially spaced vertical slots in the side wall thereof adjacent the lower end of the tube, an outer tube surrounding said ball storage tube and having a plurality of circumferentially spaced vertical slots in the side wall thereof to register respectively with said firstmentioned plurality of slots, said second-mentioned plurality of slots having lower upwardly facing abutment edges, and a plurality of circumferentially spaced leaf springs carried by said ball storage tube between the ball storage tube and said outer tube, said springs each having an intermediate bent portion projecting respectively through said first-mentioned slots normally to support a ball thereon and having outwardly and downwardly extending end portions projecting through the aligned slots externally of said outer tube and resting respectively on said abutment edges and outwardly flexible to release-a ball by downward movement of said storage tube while the outer tube remains stationary.

-2. A portable golf ball dispensing device comprising an inner ball storage tube having a lower open end, said tube having, three circumferentially spaced apart slots adjacent the lower open end thereof, an open ended outer tube surrounding a lower end portion of said ball storage tube, said open ended outer tube having three circumferentially spaced slots adjacent its lower end in registry respectively with said first-mentioned slots, said secondmentioned slots having upwardly facing lower edges, and three leaf springs interposed between said tubes having upper ends afiixed to said ball storage tube and lower free ends projecting respectively through the registering slots externally of said outer tube and resting on said upwardly facing edges, said leaf springs having intermediate bent portions projecting within said inner tube normally to support a golf ball thereon and flexible outwardly to release the ball by downward movement of said inner tube while the outer tube remains stationary.

3. A portable golf ball dispensing'device as definediby claim 2 in which the free ends of the leaf springs have abutments to engage the outer surface of said outer tube to limit inward flexing movement of-the springs,

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,418,093 5/22 Parmater -221-298 X 1,524,420 1/25 Bohlrnan 221- 297 2,027,546 1/ 36 Macdonald. 2,203,170 6/ 4O Macdonald. r 2,551,486 5/51 Burden. 2,901,146 8/59 Powell etal. 22l190 FOREIGN PATENTS 9,595 1890 Great Britain. "682,899 11/52 GreatBritain.

RAPHAEL M. LUPO, Primary Examiner. KENNETH L. LEIMER, Examiner. 

1. A PORTABLE GOLF BALL DISPENSING DEVICE COMPRISING AN INNER BALL STORAGE TUBE HAVING AN UPPER CLOSED END AND A LOWER END, A SHAFT RIGIDLY SECURED TO THE UPPER CLOSED END OF SAID BALL STORAGE TUBE, SAID BALL STORAGE TUBE HAVING A PLURALITY OF CIRCUMFERENTIALLY SPACED VERTICAL SLOTS IN THE SIDE WALL THEREOF ADJACENT THE LOWER END OF THE TUBE, AN OUTER TUBE SURROUNDING SAID BALL STORAGE TUBE AND HAVING A PLURALITY OF CIRCUMFERENTIALLY SPACED VERTICAL SLOTS IN THE SIDE WALL THEREOF TO REGISTER RESPECTIVELY WITH SAID FIRSTMENTIONED PLURALITY OF SLOTS, SAID SECOND-MENTIONED PLURALITY OF SLOTS HAVING LOWER UPWARDLY FACING ABUTMENT EDGES, AND A PLURALITY OF CIRCUMFERENTIALLY SPACED LEAF SPRINGS CARRIED BY SAID BALL STORAGE TUBE BETWEEN THE BALL STORAGE TUBE AND SAID OUTER TUBE, SAID SPRINGS EACH HAVING AN INTERMEDIATE BENT PORTION PROJECTING RESPECTIVELY THROUGH SAID FIRST-MENTIONED SLOTS NORMALLY TO SUPPORT A BALL THEREON AND HAVING OUTWARDLY AND DOWNWARDLY EXTENDING END PORTIONS PROJECTING THROUGH THE ALIGNED SLOTS EXTERNALLY OF SAID OUTER TUBE AND RESTING RESPECTIVELY ON SAID ABUTMENT EDGES AND OUTWARDLY FLEXIBLE TO RELEASE A BALL BY DOWNWARD MOVEMENT OF SAID STORAGE TUBE WHILE THE OUTER TUBE REMAINS STATIONARY. 